MAYOR Anne Taft took off her gold chain after a year of office and presented it to the new leader of the town council, Richard Morris, on Monday night.

Cllr Taft's year as mayor has been a record-breaker, with a whopping £10,000 raised for her chosen charities - WaterAid and Droitwich Spa Girl Guides.

She said: "I'm really pleased with the amount we've raised over the year. It's great news for the charities."

Now it is Richard Morris' turn as mayor, after serving a year as deputy mayor of the town council, as well as chairman of the planning committee.

Richard, who attended Droitwich Spa High School and has been a town councillor for seven years, is looking forward to his year.

He said: "I really want to highlight all the good work which goes on in Droitwich Spa's clubs and societies and I feel passionate about our heritage."

Richard has chosen four charities for the year - St Richard's Hospice, the Droitwich Spa branch of the Royal British Legion, Droitwich Carers and an 'empty pot' to be dedicated to a youth project.

He added: "It is so hard to choose when there are so many good causes but I want to raise money for specific things such as pieces of equipment for the hospice or a family room for the British Legion."

To mark the end of Anne's term of office, she held an evening at the town's famous brine baths.

She invited mayor of Evesham, Andrew Dyke, mayor of Pershore, Chris Parsons, and chairman of Wychavon District Council, David Noyes, who were all also stepping down.

Anne said: "I really wanted to show what a lovely place the brine baths is and highlight it to the mayors of the other towns in the area."